HOUSE Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez has refiled a critical piece of legislation that seeks to provide monthly hazard pay to public prosecutors regularly exposed to life-threatening risks in the line of duty.
House Bill (HB) No. 2664 proposes a P5,000 monthly hazard pay for prosecutors handling dangerous assignments such as inquest proceedings, preliminary investigations and prosecutions involving terrorism, illegal drugs, graft and corruption, money laundering and other high-risk offenses.
Speaker Romualdez, a lawyer from the University of the Philippines (UP) and Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa) president, highlighted the indispensable role of public prosecutors in upholding the rule of law and protecting citizens, while also pointing out the serious threats they face, including a growing number of attacks in recent years.
“In the performance of their functions, they are assigned to investigate and prosecute cases involving national security, dangerous drugs, terrorism and notorious criminals,” the leader of the House of Representatives pointed out.
“As a consequence of their duties and exposure to hazardous situations, many prosecutors have received death threats and a number of them have been killed in the line of duty,” Speaker Romualdez lamented.
Speaker Romualdez is joined by Tingog Party-list Reps. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez, Andrew Julian K. Romualdez and Jude A. Acidre as co-authors of the bill.
They noted that prosecutors are often the targets of threats and violence, with at least 13 killed in the line of duty over the past decade while handling sensitive and high-profile cases.
“Given the precarious nature of their work, prosecutors are thereby exposed to risks and perils to their lives,” they said.
The bill covers prosecutors from the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) National Prosecution Service who are assigned to high-risk areas or cases, including those involving national security, transnational crimes and environmental offenses.
Prosecutors stationed in conflict zones, calamity areas, or isolated assignments are also covered.
The proposed hazard pay will be tax-exempt and will not diminish any existing benefits.
The measure directs the DOJ and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to issue implementing rules within 60 days of enactment.
Funding for the initial implementation will come from the DOJ’s current budget, with future appropriations to be included in the annual General Appropriations Act (GAA).
“This bill reaffirms the State’s duty to maintain peace and order, protect life, liberty and property, and promote the general welfare,” Speaker Romualdez said.
A similar version of the bill was approved on third and final reading in the 19th Congress.
Speaker Romualdez expressed confidence that the refiled version will once again receive overwhelming support in both chambers of Congress.
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